The invention relates in general to an apparatus, method, and data structure for providing personal security via event detection, including automatic generation of an emergency signal based on an emergency event. More particularly, the invention relates to an apparatus, method, and data structure for facilitating communications between an event-detecting device and an emergency services provider, and other various features.
A universal problem encountered by every individual on Earth at some point in his or her life is a personal distress situation. Personal distress situations can result from violent crimes, medical emergencies, or accidents--sport, automobile, work, etc. In many instances, there is no clear means of resolution for the victim--he or she is physically immobilized (such as with a heart attack) or circumstantially immobilized (such as with a robbery with a gun to the victim's head). Even if the victim has taken it upon him or herself to carry something for security purposes, e.g., cell phone, firearm, personal siren, the security product the victim has chosen is unlikely to be useful for the particular event. In these situations, help may never come, or it may arrive too late. In the United States alone, over 1.5 million deaths occur every year resulting from the three major categories of personal distress situations. It is believed that most of these deaths could have been prevented if appropriate help could have been summoned to the victim in a timely manner.
Numerous personal security aids are available, e.g., cell phones, guns, Mace, home security systems, bedside phone dialers, automobile assistance systems. However, without exception, each of the available products is limited by a common characteristic--the product does not provide automatic resolution in every situation. Many other limitations are inherent to the products depending on the type of product. For instance, a can of Mace may be a great way to stop a rapist in a parking lot, but it has no value to a heart attack victim in his office; a cell phone works well for calling an ambulance when a victim breaks a leg crossing an icy street in a city, but it probably cannot assist rescuers in locating a victim buried in an avalanche. Furthermore, each product differs in packaging, transportation medium, legality, and usefulness.
However, in general, each product is designed to resolve only a single type of unfavorable situation and is largely useless for other types. Moreover, each product has other inherent limitations posed by geography or sociopolitical factors. The following table characterizes the problems with the current solutions in three different types of unfavorable situations.
Medical Violent Personal Emergency Crime Accident Firearm No resolution. Does not call for No resolution. help. No idea of location. Not automatic. Requires expert- ise to operate effectively. May escalate rether than resolve. Does not convey anything about victim's con- dition. Chemical Spray No resolution. Does not call for No resolution. help. No idea of location. Not automatic. May escalate rather than resolve. Does not convey anything about victim's con- dition. Cell Phone Does not work Does not work Does not work everywhere. everywhere. everywhere. May not convey May not convey May not con- location. location. vey location. Not automatic. Not automatic. Not automatic. Does not convey May escalate Does not con- anything about rather than vey anything victim's resolve. about victim's condition. May be unsafe to conditions. use in this situation. Home Security Only protects Only protects Only Protects System victim when victim when victim when victim is home. victim is home. victim is home. Automobile No resolution. Protects the car, No resolution. Security System not the victim. Panic feature only alerts potential help within earshot. No automatic resolution. Automobile Only useful if Does not work Only useful if Assistance victim is in the everywhere. victim is in the System (e.g., vehicle. May not convey vehicle. OnStar) Does not work location. Does not work everywhere. Not automatic. everywhere. May not convey May not con- location. vey location. Not automatic. Not automatic. Does not convey Does not con- anything about vey anything victim's about victim's condition. condition. Child Screamer No resolution. Only works if No resolution. Device child is still in range of parent's device.
What is missing is a universally applicable personal security solution. Three important factors suggest that the time is right for such a universal security solution: (1) the maturation of the Baby Boomer generation in the United States and elsewhere and the physical insecurity that comes with aging; (2) the increasing susceptibility of global citizens to random violence and the public fear of experiencing such violence; and (3) the expanding interest in "image" sports and outdoor recreational activities like skiing, hiking, mountain climbing, and hang gliding.
The foregoing demonstrates that there is a need for an invention which is universally applicable in variety of distinct personal distress situations.